Coatings for motor vehicles, airplanes, rail-mounted vehicles and the like typically combine functions of decoration and protection. As such, the development of coatings having desired properties with respect to corrosion protection, scratch resistance, optics, coloring, chemical attack and resistance to a variety of other possible environmental effects is known. In addition, coatings can include multiple layers. For example, the “paint” on a motor vehicle can include a topcoat that has a base layer and a separately applied clearcoat on top of the base layer. The base layer is typically employed for color while the clearcoat provides protection of coating pigments in the base layer, scratch/mark resistance, gloss and/or depth of field.
The application of a coating having multiple separate layers can be costly and present technical challenges such as prolonged application time, increased equipment needs and the like. Therefore, a coating formulation that self-stratifies into, for example, a base layer and a top layer could streamline a coating process, reduce manufacturing costs, etc., and thus would be desirable.